Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

550 FRUIJMENTARIAE LEGES. FRUMTENTll RIAE LEGES.
gratuitously: the latter class of persons were fr- eniperors took to keep Rome well supplied witl
nished with tickets, called tesserae nummarslssicae or corn, is liequently referred to in their coins by the
fjr;sle2td'icae. Thus we find it stated (Suet. Octav,. legends, Annzona, Ubertas, Abundantia, Liberalitas,
41) that Augustus, on one occasion, doubled the &c. YWe find in a coin of Nerva the legend Jl)ebei
nullber of the tesser.aeyfsum.entalciae. If, therefore, zurbanae frynseJto cosstittsto. (Eckhel, vol. vi.
the corn was, as a general rule, not given, but sold, p. 406.)
we may conclude that every citizen was entitled to In course of time, the sale of the corn by the
be enrolled in the 150,000 corn-receivers, inde- state seems to have ceased altogether, and the
pendent of his fortune. The opposite opinion has distribution became altogether gratuitous. Every
been maintained by many modern writers; but the corn-receiver was therefore now provided with a
arguments, which have been brought forward by tessera, and this tessera, when once granted to him,
MIommsen (Die Rinzischen Tribus, p. 187) and became his property. Hence, it came to pass, that
others, but into which our space will not allow us he was not only allowed to keep the tessera for
to enter, render the above supposition exceedingly life, but even to dispose of it by sale, and bequeath
probable. it by will. (Dig. 5. tit. 1. s. 52; 39. tit. 1. s. 49; 39.
The useful regulations of Caesar fell into neglect tit. 1. s. 87.) Every citizen was competent to
after his death, and the number of corn-receivers hold a tessera with the exception of senators.
was soon increased beyond the limits of 150,000, Further, as the corn had been originally distriwhich had been fixed by the dictator. This we buted to th3 people according to the thirty-five
learn from the Monumentum Ancyranum, in which tribes into which they were divided, the cornAugustus enumerates the number of persons, to receivers in cacll tribe formed a kind of corporation,
whom he had given congiaria at different times; which came eventually to be looked upon as the
and there can be no doubt that the receivers of the tribe, when the tribes had lost all political signicongiaria and of the public corn were the same. ficance. Hence, the purchase of a tessera became
Thus, in B. c. 44, and on the three following occa- equivalent to the purchase of a place in a tribe;
sions, he distributed the eongiaria to 250,000 per- and, accordingly, we find in the Digest the exsons; and in B. C. 5, the nnumber of recipients had pressions emere tributz and encere tesseram used as
amounted to 320,000. At length, in B.c. C2, synonymous. (Dig. 32. tit. 1. s. 35.)
Augustus reduced the number of recipients to Another change was also introduced at a later
200,000, and renewed many of Caesar's regula- period, which rendered the bounty still more actions. (Suet. Octav. 40; Dion Cass. lv. 10.) He ceptable to the people. Instead of distributing the
had, indeed, thought of abolishing the system of' corn every month, wheaten bread, called annona
corn-distributions altogether on account of their civica, was given to the people. It is uncertain at
injurious influence upon Italian agriculture, but what time this change was introduced, but it seems
had not persevered in his intention from the con- to have been the custom before the reign of Aureviction that the practice would again be introduced lian (A. D. 270-275), as it is related of this emby his successors. (Suet. Octav. 42.) The chief peror that on his return from his Eastern expedition,
regulations of Augustus seem to have been: 1. he distributed among the people a larger quantity of
That every citizen should receive monthly a cer- bread, and of a different form from that which had
tain quantity of corn (probably 5 modii) on the beenusuallygivsen. (Vopisc. Aurel. 35; Zosim. i. 61.)
payment of a certain small sum. As the number The bread was baked by the Pistores, who delivered
of recipients was fixed by Augustus at 200,000, it to the various depots in the city, from which it was
there were consequently 12,000,000 modii distri- fetched away on certain days by the holders of the.
buted every year. Occasionally, in seasons of tesserae. (Orelli, Izscrip. No. 3358.) These depots
scarcity, or in order to confer a particular favour, had steps (gcradus) leading to them, whence the
Augustus made these distributions quite gratui- bread was called pae2is gradeilis; and there were
tons: they then became congiaria. [CONGIARIuA.u.] the strictest regulations that the bread should only
2. That those who were completely indigent should be distributed from these steps, and should never
receive the corn gratuitously, as Julius Caesar had be obtained at the bakers. (Cod. Theod. 14. tit.
determined, and should be furnished for the pur- 17. ss. 3, 4.) When Constantine transferred the
pose with tesserae nuammoariae orfrssizsezstiase, which seat of government to Constantinople, the system
entitled them to the corn without payment. (Suet. of gratuitous distribution of bread was also transOctav. 41.) ferred to that city; and in order to encourage the
The system, which had been established by buildino of houses, all householders were entitled
Augustus, was followed by his successors; but as to a share of the imperial bounty. (Zosim. ii. 32;
it was always one of the first maxims of the state Socrat. H. E. ii. 13; Sozom. iii. 7; Cod. Theod.
policy of the Roman emperors to prevent any dis- 14. tit. 17.) The distribution of bread at Rome
turbance in the capital, they frequently lowered was, however, still continued; and the care which
the price of the public corn, and frequently dis- the later emperors took that both Rome and Contributed it gratuitously as a congicaerissis. Hence, stantinople should be properly supplied with corn,
the cry of the populace paners et circezises. No may be seen by the regulations in the Cod. Theod.
emperor ventured to abolish the public distributions 14. tit. 15, De Canooze 17lzrumsentario urbis RoLmae,
of corn: the most that he dared do, was to raise and tit. 16, De Frsmesanto Urbfis Constastinopolitsmczae.
the price at which it was sold. When, therefore, The superintendence of the corn-market, under the
we find it stated in Dion Cassius (Ixii. 18), that emperors, belonged to the Prcaefectsus Annonae.
Nero did away with the distributions of corn after Many points connected with this subject have
the burning of Rome, we cannot understand this been necessarily omitted in consequence of ou.r
literally, but must suppose that he either raised the limits. The reader who wishes for further minprice of the commodity or, what is more probable, formation is referred to: Contareni, De F'ru2z.
obliged those poor to pay for it, who had previously Room. Larygitione, in the Thesaurus of Graevius,
received it gratuitously. The care, which the vol. viii. p. 923; Dirksen,, Civilist. Abhandilurene,